Traditionally, pluggable small form factor optical transceivers have been supported on a host circuit board utilizing a cage 1, see FIG. 1, such as the one disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,419,523 issued Jul. 16, 2002 to Hon Hai Precision Ind. Co., which completely surrounds the transceiver module except for a few holes 2 in the top 3, providing good EMI protection. Unfortunately, the amount of heat dissipation is greatly reduced, as air flow over the transceiver module is limited. Moreover, since the transceiver module is completely enclosed, no additional thermally conductive surfaces can be mounted thereto for added heat dissipation.
With reference to FIG. 2, with the advent of 10 Gb/s optical transceivers 11, which require heat sinks 12, including large heat-sinking pins or fins 12a extending therefrom, for dissipating the large amounts of heat generated therein, open top guide rails 13, have become a more logical choice of support for a host circuit board 15. Unfortunately, during insertion into the guide rail 13, the large fins 12a occasionally contact an edge of an opening in a faceplate 14, causing a ratcheting series of impacts, which can damage the fins 12a, i.e. hamper their ability to dissipate heat.
An object of the present invention is to overcome the shortcomings of the prior art by providing a transceiver guide rail with a guide for facilitating insertion of a transceiver into the guide rail without damaging the heat sink fins extending therefrom.